


One Shot Collection

by booms



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Alternate Universe, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Teiko era, will tag as i update
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-06
Updated: 2017-08-19
Packaged: 2018-09-15 06:15:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9222791
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/booms/pseuds/booms
Summary: A collection of unrelated drabbles/ficlets about Nijimura and Haizaki in different situations taking place in AUs or canonverse.





	1. Rainbow Hotline

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> AU where Nijimura and Haizaki are secretly dating in high school

It was no secret to anyone in school that local bad boy, Haizaki Shougo, only answered to one person only—the student council president, Nijimura Shuuzou.

If anyone were to cross violent paths with the sixteen-year-old delinquent during school hours, all they had to do was send a quick email to Nijimura. It had become like a hotline for the students around the school.

It only took a mere minute after sending an email to hear the president's loud voice calling out for Haizaki. Then, a game of cat and mouse would start on school grounds, but their council president always caught him each time.

“Okay, okay, I give in!” Haizaki would shout all the same when Nijimura would twist his arm back and drag him to the student council meeting room. Probably to give him a good beating.

Nijimura Shuuzou really was their saving grace. The students didn’t know how he balanced council president _and_ basketball captain duties. All that on top of being number one student with the best grades must be super stress inducing, but Nijimura was always composed and energetic, wishing his juniors a nice day everyday. No sign of stress whatsoever.

He was a top model student compared to the cornrowed-haired teen who (to the student body’s knowledge) didn’t care about anything ever.

But as Haizaki Shougo was forcibly shoved into the meeting room, he heard the click of the door being locked behind him and turned around to see a tired Nijimura approaching him and settling his head onto Haizaki’s left shoulder.

The so called ‘delinquent’ sighed, rubbing his boyfriend’s arms slowly and supporting most of his leaning weight. The older teen was overworked nowadays, and Haizaki always told him the same thing. “I told you not to take up too many activities, Shuuzou. You’ll just get really tired.”

Haizaki felt Nijimura’s muffled response through his jacket, but he was sure he’d heard right. _College Entrance Exams._

With Nijimura’s face still buried into his shoulder, Haizaki encircled his left arm around Nijimura’s waist and gently led them both to the closest chairs in the small, bright lit room. When they both sat down close to each other, Nijimura closed his eyes and tucked his head underneath his boyfriend’s chin while Haizaki tightened his hold. 

Haizaki whispered to him, “You’ll get into a good school. You’re number one here. And if somehow you totally flunk all those exams, you’ll at least get accepted into the crappiest school… where I’ll probably end up at… ” 

He was never good with words. Was there such thing as a ‘crappiest school’? He didn’t really know. But if there was, Haizaki was most likely going there. He never gave much thought about post-graduation plans before he started dating Nijimura. He thought he was just going to work alongside his older brother in the local supermarket. Alas, that had changed. He snorted lightly at the thought.

Haizaki slowly nudged Nijimura only to hear a faint snore coming from him.

“Sleeping in school again, Shuuzou? What would your precious student body think?” he teased.

Haizaki leaned his head onto Nijimura’s and closed his eyes as well. 

*

Nijimura would feel better after a half hour nap, just like he did each time he fell asleep on his boyfriend's shoulder. It was comforting having Haizaki there to keep him in check when he was stressed.

In the end, unbeknownst to the student body, Haizaki Shougo really was Nijimura's saving grace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So it seems I started a one shot collection. I was writing a longer fic of these two, but then I got stuck... thus this was born. Hopefully, I get to add more soon because these two need more love! :)


	2. The Boy Next Door

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rival Neighbors AU

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyo! Thanks for the kudos and comments! I honestly didn't think I'd get any type of feedback at all. So thanks so much for reading! :D

That Nijimura guy was annoying to say the least. 

Every time Shougo came home from school, he found his mortal enemy lounging comfortably on the sofa as if he lived there. Shougo groaned each time because it wasn’t the most pleasant thing to see after a grueling session of basketball practice. 

_The guy lived next door_ , Shougo always wanted to shout. _Why couldn’t he just stay in his own home?_

Shougo knew his mother would scold him, saying that Nijimura’s presence brightened up her day, so with great reluctance, he bit his tongue. As much as Shougo hated his neighbor, his mother’s happiness came first, _but_ that didn’t mean he had to get along with the guy.

The worst part about Nijimura Shuuzou was that he hung out with his brother, Taisuke, way more than Shougo did. Nijimura constantly intruded on his brotherly time.

Well, _not_ today.

Taisuke currently laughed at some video displayed on Nijimura’s phone held out in front of him, and Shougo decided to put a stop to it.

“I’m home.”

Taisuke looked up first. “Welcome back.”

“Took you long enough,” Nijimura said offhandedly.

Both their attentions went back to the phone.

Narrowing his eyes at the unwanted guest from the entryway, Shougo dropped his school bag down and kicked his dark shoes off, one after the other, each jostling haphazardly against Nijimura's white ones. Shougo hoped his worn out shoes left a nice, big scratch on Nijimura’s. 

He slipped out of his uniform blazer and hung it on the wall mounted coat rack.

“I need with help with geometry, Tai.” Shougo smirked when his booming voice interrupted their entertainment. He picked up his heavy bag and tried yanking his notebook out of it, shaking it violently when the notebook edges got stuck in the small, zipped opening.

Nijimura snorted lightly, the corners of his lips quirked up. “Need help with that?”

After he freed the notebook, Shougo hurled his bag at Nijimura's head. That should shut him up, but Nijimura caught it, the impact of the weight pushing him back further into the sofa. 

Shougo rolled his eyes. The urge to punch that glint in Nijimura’s eye seemed more tempting by the second. He strode over, seating himself in the small space between the two, and his arm slightly shoved Nijimura further down the end of the sofa.

Nijimura kicked Shougo’s legs next to him, the bag laid forgotten on the floor. “Is this how you treat your seniors at school?”

Shougo kicked back with much more force. “Only the ones who give me a hard time.”

Taisuke sighed. “Okay, you two. That’s enough.” He scooted to make breathable space for all of them. “Sorry, Shuuzou. My brother needs help.”

“It’s alright. I can wait.”

Nijimura huffed, his upper lip jutting out in a familiar way Shougo's used to seeing whenever he provoked the guy.

Shougo moved closer to his brother, completely facing him and making sure to block Nijimura’s view with an upright posture. Taisuke started examining his notes and gave him tips.

Shougo _technically_ needed the help. He flunked his last geometry exam and fell behind in the class, but he couldn't concentrate on his brother’s help, not when he knew his number one enemy sat next to him to wait for Taisuke.

Their relationship mostly consisted of one trying to outperform the other in anything, whether it was balancing a book atop his head the longest or shooting the most baskets in a competitive shootout. They attended opposing high schools with a long antagonistic history in basketball tournaments which added more fuel to their burning rivalry.

It was bad enough that they competed in just about everything, but now he had to fight for his brother time as well.

Nijimura Shuuzou was the boy next door who was disgustingly honest, kind and completely in love with Taisuke. Shougo didn’t see any reason, outside their petty competitions, to explain why Nijimura came over other than to spend time with his brother. 

At first, Shougo thought Nijimura’s frequent visits were to rile him up, but he noticed the snickers they shared behind his back. Something was up.

Nijimura even had his own siblings, and sometimes he would bring them over as well. Shougo bet good money that Nijimura brought his younger brother and sister to win Shougo’s brother over.

Taisuke did love kids—studying to be a pediatrician and all. 

The mini-Nijimuras, however, only bothered Shougo during their visits. They latched themselves onto his legs and dragged him out of his room whenever he wanted some time to himself. The little monsters pulled at his silver hair and tried to play hide-and-seek with him. He had a gut feeling their older brother ordered them to wreck his peaceful days.

Taisuke constantly told Shougo about Nijimura’s good intentions, that he didn’t have an older brother figure to look up to, plus he also wanted to spend time with people his own age. The neighborhood mostly consisted of elderly and middle-aged folk, but there was one teenager who lived down the street and was exactly Nijimura’s age, seventeen. Not the twenty that Taisuke was, _nor_ the sixteen that Shougo was. _Seventeen._

‘Spend time with people his own age.’ That was some twisted joke, right?

Shougo knew better. Nijimura wanted to ruin his life and take Taisuke away from him. He wasn’t about to sit back and let that happen.

Even as Taisuke explained some stuff about his notes, Nijimura didn’t hold back in butting in between them. “You should use the Pythagorean Theorem here,” he said, leaning over Shougo to point to the scribbles on the notebook, “to find the length of this side.”

Nijimura’s face was close, and Shougo could smell the faint scent of fresh soap emitting from his rival. He must have recently showered after his practice, Shougo wondered.

“Did you understand it?” Nijimura asked, withdrawing himself back.

The playful smile Nijimura wore irritated Shougo, so he opened his mouth to tell him off, but the melodic ringing of Taisuke’s phone interrupted him.

“Oh, that’s Mei. I’ll be right back.”

They both watched him sprint upstairs, and Shougo slumped back against the sofa, placing his notebook where Taisuke had sat. Sabotaging Nijimura's crush on his brother sure made him hungry.

He reached forward to grab a wrapped peppermint from the dish his mother had set on the coffee table for guests. 

“Mei?”

The confused expression from Nijimura only meant one thing: Taisuke hadn't told him yet. Shougo’s eyes lit up, and he burst into laughter. “Yeah, that’s his new girlfriend. Got together yesterday.” 

Shougo broke many hearts, so he knew the face of rejection. He quickly turned his body to fully face Nijimura. There was no way he was going to miss out on seeing his rival’s heartbreak. He only wished he had some popcorn in the house instead of some peppermint candy.

He almost felt sorry for the lovestruck fool. _Almost_. “You didn’t know?”

Nijimura shrugged. “No, it’s not like it’s any of _my_ business.”

Shougo’s eyebrows scrunched together, his hands midway from tearing the transparent wrapper. Surely, he heard wrong. “What?”

“I said it’s not my business. He can date whomever he wants…?”

Shougo stayed motionless, overlooking the fact that Nijimura edged closer to him, their knees slightly bumping into each other. 

The older teen patted his arm. “Haizaki, you really need to pay attention. You don’t want to get kicked out of first string, do you? Are you _sure_ you’re understanding right triangles?”

Nijimura’s words fell on deaf ears.

_Of course_ Taisuke can date whomever he wanted, just _not_ Nijimura, who seemed to be taking the news rather well. “Don’t you care that my brother has a girlfriend?” 

Nijimura clicked his tongue. “You seem hung up on that…”

And why wouldn’t he be? Shougo had spent months fabricating the theory that Nijimura had this huge crush on Taisuke. His theory explained why his neighbor was so hard on him beyond their trivial rivalry. He thought Nijimura wanted to kick Shougo out of Taisuke’s life to have him to himself, but now Nijimura supposedly had no care about Taisuke’s relationship status. Added to that, Nijimura didn’t want Shougo to fail his class.

Nothing made sense anymore. The gears in his mind were trying to work fast to form another theory, but this new revelation fried most of his brain.

“Aren’t you in love with my brother?”

His rival’s eye twitched.

“ _Me?_ In love with your _brother_?” Nijimura growled, each word louder than the last. 

It gave Shougo chills. He wanted to shake it off, but Nijimura’s icy, cold stare kept him still. He opted to nod curtly instead, waiting for Nijimura’s reaction. 

“Are. You. Serious?”

Shougo could call this short conversation weird. It was the most civilized they’d been in months, but he could tell something bigger brewed as he saw Nijimura bend over to clutch the front of his own head, muttering some words that Shougo couldn’t make out. 

The atmosphere suddenly went quiet, and Shougo looked around quickly for anything to destroy the tense situation. Maybe a light cushion to throw at him, but Shougo noticed the way Nijimura rubbed his face, his eyelids scrunching closed and lips pursing into a line. Shougo’d never seen him look so troubled before.

Not knowing what to do, he distracted himself by twirling the peppermint in his hand, the crunch of the wrapper providing the only sound in the room.

“Haizaki,” Nijimura finally started, straightening up.

Said teen felt warm hands slither up to his cheeks. His eyes widened in disbelief, and the unwrapped candy slipped from his stiff hands.

Shougo’s face was brought down closer to Nijimura’s. He often forgot his height overpassed Nijimura’s by a slim margin. His enemy made him feel so small at times.

“Where did you get the idea that I’m in love with your brother?”

Shougo had a difficult time focusing. Nijimura’s rough demeanor changed in the blink of an eye, too fast for Shougo to process. The hushed, soft tone was new, and he couldn’t help but glance down at the other’s mouth. The tension from Nijimura’s upper lip disappeared, making both his lips appear full, smooth, and _inviting_.

“Pay attention,” Nijimura breathed out. His eyes were soft. “Don’t miss this.”

Tilting his head to the side, Nijimura closed his eyes and pressed his lips against the younger teen’s.

Shougo's eyes closed soon after, and his hands found their way to the waist in front of him, keeping them both in place.

Slow and tender kisses were huge contrasts from the rapid and harsh punches he was used to receiving from Nijimura. They were also vastly different from the sloppy kisses he gave to random girls behind the school gym. Shougo was a distant stranger to slow and tender, and as soft lips continued to graze his own, he wished to learn more about this type of intimacy.

The heat from his face disappeared when Nijimura slid his hands down to grasp the front of Shougo’s uniform shirt.

This was wrong. _So_ wrong. No two rivals should kiss each other, yet here they were. Nijimura led with gradual movements, and Shougo followed with equal pacing.

The older male soon pulled away slowly, and Shougo sat there, half-lidded eyes staring back at his enemy’s.

“Don’t fail your classes, Shougo,” Nijimura whispered. There was something about the way his longtime rival said his given name that caused a gentle warmth to spread through his chest. Shougo craved to hear it again. “I wouldn’t want to find another rival as good as you.”

With a smug grin, Nijimura punched him softly across his chin before gathering his things, leaving Shougo alone in a mess of thoughts.

He rubbed the spot where Nijimura hit him, relieved to see the tiniest hint of pre-kiss Nijimura Shuuzou. It was the only Nijimura he’d learned how to deal with, and frankly, he didn't know what to do from this day forward.

Shougo ran his fingers through his silver hair. Without a doubt he understood the message behind the sensual kiss. His rival liked him.

How long ago, he was not sure, but now posed the bigger question of how much had _this_ smitten Nijimura overlapped with the Nijimura he’d known for years, the one he’d _thought_ was in love with his brother.

His mind tried piecing Shougo’s new discovery together with fragments of memories including the times when the loser of a basketball match had to buy the other dinner. His cheeks flushed. It had only been the two of them each evening. No Taisuke around. Had those outings been dates the whole time? Did Nijimura want to kiss him back then?

He shook his head. It was official, Haizaki Shougo was broken, and like a broken record player, the recent memory of the satisfying kiss kept replaying nonstop in his head.

The one thing he knew for sure was that he wanted to know more of Nijimura’s intimacy.

His brother came back a moment later. “Where’s Shuuzou?”

The negative thoughts that normally surfaced after hearing his neighbor's name perished, and they were replaced by the curious thought of what would happen if Shougo ever called Nijimura by his given name.

“He… left…” the younger Haizaki managed to say, blankly staring at the recently emptied spot on the sofa.

“I see. So did you understand your notes?”

Shougo cleared his throat. “Uh… yeah…” He looked back at his notebook, but his mind ceased to function correctly. His sight grew hazy, and the numbers and triangles on the paper blended into the white background. On top of that, the tingling feeling on his lips still lingered, demanding his full attention. “Pythagorean… on lips—er, _this_.” His brother looked amused, and Shougo’s face grew hotter. “ _This_ triangle!”

“So you finally caught on?”

Shougo cursed. Taisuke definitely wasn’t talking about his notes.

“Argh! I got it, okay!”

Ignoring his brother’s loud chuckles, Shougo picked up his bag from the floor and ran upstairs to his bedroom, reevaluating his relationship with Nijimura.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was so ridiculously cliché and self-indulgent. lmao. It was supposed to be like 500 words...


	3. Mr. Lovable

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Valentine's Day at Teiko

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm pretty late with this... whoops. Happy Late Valentine's Day!  
> Adding this just in case:
> 
> *** WARNING: This one-shot contains Momoi's crush on Kuroko.

“Hold this for a minute.”

Haizaki felt the world closing in on him as soft plush smothered his face. A chunk of fabric strings tickled his tongue, causing him to spit to the side.

He'd woken up an hour ago from a weird dream consisting of running through a maze of life-size objects. He just didn't expect a real one to attack him on his way to school. 

The morning glow bounced off the white plush, straining Haizaki’s eyes. He could smell the strawberry vanilla fragrance emitting from the bear, the same one Momoi wore.

She had thrust the stuffed animal to him out of nowhere.

He wanted to throw it back to her at the sight of dark beaded eyes peering down at him. He swore the creepy eyes bore into his soul. It was off-putting and unappealing, nothing like the giant, savory bowl of ramen or the towering block of gold from his recent dream.

He wanted to be as far away as possible from Momoi’s bear.

The entire head was slightly bigger than Haizaki’s, and its dangling legs swung around his ankles. 

The more he stared at it, the more he wanted to beat the thing up. If he did, he knew the pink-haired manager would somehow convince Nijimura to make Haizaki run some extra laps outside of practice hours.

His leg muscles still ached from the laps last week. He wasn’t risking it.

Momoi rummaged through her satchel, keys jangling against books in the process.

They were standing outside the school gates with very few students around, mostly sport club members scurrying to their practices. Haizaki and Momoi weren’t blocking the entrance or anything, yet Haizaki had no desire to stand there awkwardly with a life-size bear in his arms. 

He earned a confused look from his history instructor walking by. Haizaki brought the bear’s paw to hide his face, not looking forward to explain the situation. 

He checked his phone. A whole minute that Momoi asked of him had elapsed, and they needed to get to morning practice soon.

Haizaki didn’t want to be at school at the crack of dawn, but it was Valentine’s day. There was no way he would miss out on the girls that bunched around the gym entrance, waiting to give their chocolates to the basketball players.

“So… where’s my chocolates?” he asked bluntly. 

He never thought he was Momoi’s type from the way she flaunted herself to Kuroko on a daily basis. 

Guess she was into the bad boy type after all. Haizaki couldn’t blame her.

Though, her confession to him was off to a bad start with the stuffed bear nearly suffocating him. Haizaki would forgive her in exchange for some homemade sweets.

“Sorry, they’re not for you.” 

The dejected look on Haizaki’s face went unnoticed as she continued to dig through her satchel.

“Pfft, your loss,” he grumbled, checking his phone again. 

Three minutes had gone by. If he woke up to attend morning practice, he might as well make it on time.

“Oh no, I must’ve misplaced them,” she cried, running off further away from Teiko with her phone against her ear. “Dai-chan, you better answer your phone!”

“You forgot this,” Haizaki spoke up, waving the stuffed animal in the air. 

“What a cute bear!” 

Several girls awed as they crowded around him.

“Wow, you must be a really great guy to be given such a gift,” a third-year stated, her hand reaching out to feel the plush material. Loud whispers from other girls were followed by squeals and giggles.

“Have my chocolates, Haizaki-kun~”

“No, take mine!” 

“Mine are the best! Taste them.”

His lips twisted into a smirk as the neatly decorated packages were shoved to his face. Haizaki swiped his free thumb across the tip of his tongue. There was no harm in holding the stuffed animal it until Momoi returned.

*

He made it to practice in the nick of time.

The girls followed him to the gym and huddled at the entrance, cheering at every basket he shot. When they got distractingly loud, Nijimura ordered Haizaki to close the gym doors. 

“Sorry, ladies. This will only be for an hour.” He gave a wink as he closed the doors, taking pleasure in the disappointed whines. 

“Good job, Haizaki. You actually came early.”

Haizaki’s eyes slightly widened at the praise accompanied by the hand settled on his shoulder. _That_ was new.

“Does your plush toy have to be here though?” Nijimura motioned to the bear leaning against the gym wall, right next to Midorima’s smaller brown one. “I get Midorima’s. Lucky item and all, but since when do you care about this mushy kind of stuff?”

“Someone gave it to me,” he replied, a smug grin on Haizaki’s face. “‘Cause I’m _great_. I wouldn’t want to crush that person’s dreams by not showing it off.”

Nijimura’s brow arched, eyes blankly staring at him.

When Kuroko stepped foot in the gym after squeezing through the swarm of girls to get to the doors, Haizaki felt a small stab of guilt, and it grew worse when Kuroko mentioned how cute the bear was. 

When Nijimura asked who the gift was from, Haizaki spewed out incoherent words and pushed passed his captain, who looked at him suspiciously.

That was how the rest of the morning went with Nijimura’s gaze mostly on Haizaki. 

Momoi and Aomine hadn’t shown up for practice, and nobody knew where they were. Akashi had tried to get ahold of them, but his calls went straight to voicemails. 

Haizaki spun the basketball in his hands, breathing a subtle sigh of relief when no one saw. He would willingly give up the bear to Momoi… until the end of the day, that is.

*

During class, a number of girls blew flirty kisses and threw seductive winks his way. 

Haizaki lounged in his seat and basked in all the attention.

He had crammed the sweets into the biggest pouch he’d received, and it stayed in the back corner of the classroom with the bear he dubbed _Mr. Lovable_. Who knew the massive bear would become a huge girl magnet? 

He sure didn’t.

With a white pouch full of candy in his ownership, Haizaki almost felt like Santa Claus, except people handed _him_ gifts instead of the other way around. 

The jealous looks from the guys were a bonus, boosting Haizaki’s ego tenfold. He had even slapped Murasakibara’s prying hand away from his pouch at some point during practice. It felt satisfying. Murasakibara never shared his food. Why should Haizaki share with him?

Class time took forever. 

He yearned to finally taste his sweets, preferably having them fed to him by his new fangirls.

The cocoa aroma collectively wafted through the classroom from all the chocolates the students received. His hands twitched, itching to have a bite of his, but first he needed to store some away to make room for more in his pouch.

When lunchtime started, he briefly accepted lunch invitations before heading to his shoe locker, lugging the large bag full of Valentine chocolates with one arm. The other arm held Mr. Lovable with a tight grip born from the paranoia that the bear might be taken away from him by a certain pink-haired student.

Haizaki rounded a corner, but he quickly retreated back when he saw two particular people, one being Momoi. He nervously stood nearby to listen closely.

“Where is he? That’s supposed to be for Tetsu-kun.”

Haizaki tsked. _No_. He just wanted to collect more sweets before giving up Mr. Lovable. 

“I’ll find him soon. Don’t worry.”

That was definitely Nijimura’s deep voice, and Haizaki gulped. Nijimura was the only one who knew the majority of Haizaki’s hiding spots.

He sprinted before his captain got ahold of him.

Haizaki had never hidden in the gym because it reminded him of basketball practice. Nijimura couldn’t possibly think to look there since Haizaki always avoided the place.

His heart dropped when Aomine, who popped some money in a vending machine, noticed him. “Yo, that’s Satsuki’s bear,” Aomine yelled, running toward him.

Haizaki turned, colliding with somebody. He groaned when his back hit the ground.

The warmth from Mr. Lovable disappeared from his arm as Nijimura snatched it away, dusted off any dirt from the bear and handed it over to Momoi.

With a happy shout, the pink-haired student hugged the bear. 

Haizaki rubbed his head, and when he felt his pouch gone from his side, he looked up and watched as Momoi stepped away with his heavy pouch of chocolates in her hand.

“These belong to Tetsu-kun,” she said, leaving to find the true owner of the bear.

Still laying, Haizaki pathetically reached out to his distant pouch of chocolates. He didn’t even get to have a taste. 

It was tragic. His lifeless partner-in-crime, his chocolates, and his ego quickly disappeared in a matter of seconds.

“Don’t worry, dude. I didn’t get anything grand like that either,” Aomine muttered, running after Momoi.

Haizaki’s hand was still in the air, and a warm hand enveloped it, pulling him up. 

“Meet me here after school.” 

His captain’s voice was surprisingly calm, and Haizaki snapped his eyes shut, waiting for a punch, a kick, any form of physical punishment for his deceit.

Nijimura’s hands patted Haizaki’s uniform, dusting off the dirt collected from the fall.

Haizaki’s shoulders slumped, his eyes still closed. “Ugh. Just tell me now. I’m gonna have to run ten extra laps, right?” 

After-school practice was cancelled due to the overwhelming member vote in favor to take the afternoon off today. The last thing Haizaki wanted to do on Valentine’s day was spend it running around the track field under the watch of Nijimura Shuuzou.

He opened one eye, and his senpai flicked him on the forehead. Haizaki winced at the slight pain.

“You’ll see.”

*

“... sorry about taking your bear.”

“It’s okay, Haizaki-kun.” 

Haizaki couldn’t help but laugh when Kuroko squeezed his Valentine gift. Mr. Lovable almost swallowed Kuroko whole in comparison, and the sight lifted Haizaki’s spirit a bit.

“You can have your treats back. Momoi-san’s chocolates were the only ones truly made for me.”

Neither were they made for Haizaki, but if he took the chocolates again, Nijimura or Momoi would punish him shortly after.

“Nah, they’re yours.” Haizaki ruffled the bear one last time. Haizaki was going to miss his fellow partner-in-crime. “Mr. Lovable will bring you good—”

“Hai-za-ki,” a sweet voice sang behind him. A smiling brunette slipped a piece of paper in his hands, strutting passed him. She gave a wink over her shoulder. “Call me.”

He stared at the name and numbers scribbled on the paper.

“I think _you’re_ the lovable one, Haizaki-kun,” Kuroko said, taking a step to leave as he spotted their captain approaching. Kuroko nodded in acknowledgement and left them alone.

“Well, you sure became popular these last few hours,” Nijimura teased, taking the paper out of his junior’s hands.

The smug smile returned on Haizaki's face when Nijimura inspected the piece. “What can I say?” 

One phone number given without the bear in Haizaki’s possession, and his ego spiked back up. Kuroko was right. 

“I’m Mr. Lovable,” he declared.

Haizaki frowned at the huff of laughter coming from the older teen. “How many chocolates did _you_ get?” he asked.

“A few,” Nijimura responded as he dug through his own pouch. “But they don’t mean as much as _this_ one.”

Haizaki blinked. “What—”

“Hold this for me.”

Haizaki felt a strange sense of déjà vu as a plastic bag full of various chocolate shapes was thrust to his chest. He stood there dumbfounded, staring at the homemade treats before lifting his hands out. “Uh… hold them for how long?”

Nijimura started walking towards the school gates, his eyes holding a knowing look. “I’ll see you tomorrow, bright and early… _Mr. Lovable_.”

Haizaki narrowed his eyes at the teasing tone, and realization hit him that Nijimura stole the girl’s phone number from him.

He shrugged, smirking at the chocolates. He definitely wasn’t returning these no matter how much his captain would beg for them. Haizaki opened the bag, the sweet smell floating in the air. He trudged home while he peacefully ate the chocolates, glad that he got some this Valentine’s day.


	4. Hair

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Future AU

When Shuuzou and Shougo decided to show their old, preteen photo album to their six-year-old daughter, Sora, right before bedtime, they didn’t expect her to barge into their bedroom a few hours later.

“I can’t sleep,” she whispered right by their bedside, clutching the pink pillow and stuffed bear she brought with her.

With the helpful moonlight peering through the window, the sleepy, married couple could see the worried look etched on their daughter’s delicate face.

Shougo quickly sat up and switched the bedside lamp on as Shuuzou lifted Sora up to place her between them.

There was only one other time when Sora unexpectedly popped into their bedroom in the middle of the night. It happened months ago when she had just lost a baby tooth, and she had taken the loss quite hard, dreaming that all her teeth would fall at once that night.

Shuuzou gave a light press of lips on her forehead to comfort her. “Bad dream?”

She squeezed her bear. “What if… what if I get bad hair someday too?”

Shuuzou briefly looked at his husband in realization. 

Sora had asked them earlier that day if they had any photos of their respective blond and cornrows phase. She’d heard about the two over-the-top hairstyles from her grandparents one day, and she was curious to see how different her parents had looked when they were younger. 

Her two parents noticed that her loud eagerness was soon replaced by pure silence when they flipped through the album together, and now they understood the reason.

Shougo tutted, fluffing her pillow. “Hey, that style was _in_ back then.”

Shuuzou’s eyebrow arched at the statement. “Yours was ridiculous. Mine was _only_ a color change.”

“Am I going to get cornrows?” she exclaimed, clasping her dark, shoulder-length hair in horror. “Is Shiro going to go blond?”

At the mention of their son, Shuuzou glanced at the baby monitor on the bedside table. Through the video feed, the latest addition to their family laid sound asleep in his crib next door. Shiro was only two months old, and his head had a sparse covering of thin hair that showed hints of Shougo’s silver.

“No one is going to force you to get a ‘bad’ hairstyle,” Shougo air quoted. 

Shuuzou nodded. “That’s right. And even if you wear a certain hairstyle, only _you_ decide if you like it or not. If someone judges you for that, it’s best to ignore them.”

Sora pursed her lips, appearing to be unconvinced.

“Exhibit one,” Shuuzou started, pointing to his husband. “Your papa is still proud of that look after all these years even though we have a completely different opinion on it.”

Shougo playfully rolled his eyes at the small jab.

“Exhibit two?” Sora peered up at Shuuzou.

“I wanted a change for myself, but ultimately decided that it wasn’t for me.” He rubbed her back in a soothing manner. Of course there was more to his blond story, and he hoped for the chance to tell her _and_ Shiro about his rebellious stage when the time was right. “So if you don’t like your hairstyle, changing it is always an option.”

Shougo caught the underlying meaning behind his husband’s words, for it was a similar phrase Shuuzou told him when he came back into Shougo’s life. The hairstyles in their adolescent years represented a big part of their lives that shaped them to the men they were today, and though Shougo regretted his old ways, he always took a peek back to make sure he didn’t revert to his high school self.

“If I get a bad hairstyle, you’ll tell me, right?” Sora asked.

“Of course,” Shuuzou assured her. If she would ever show signs of a rebellious phase, he would do anything in his power to prevent it from getting out of hand, and he was sure Shougo would try everything to stop her if it ever got to that point.

But in terms of the literal topic at hand, Shuuzou knew she could pull off any hairstyle. There was not much to worry about.

“Bad hair is not in your genes. You’ll look cute and pretty no matter what,” Shougo whispered, brushing his daughter’s side-swept bangs further to the side to give her a kiss. He grew in awe everyday at how much she looked like Shuuzou. “ _You’re_ pretty, Shiro’s pretty, your father’s pretty. End of story.”

“You’re pretty too, papa,” Sora squeaked, flashing him the cute little gap-toothed smile he was used to seeing.

Shuuzou leaned over, smirking. “ _Super_ pretty.”

“Welp, that’s settled then. Let’s all get our beauty sleep,” Shougo grumbled as he shut off the lamp. He shoved his face in his pillow to hide the small blush that formed. “Shiro is already beating us all in that game.”

Sora’s light, pleasant giggle resonated throughout the room as Shuuzou tucked her in. “Will you let me brush you hair tomorrow, father? Papa?”

Shougo and Shuuzou hummed in sync, their fatigue quickly catching up to them. “Tomorrow morning.”

The horrible images of herself in cornrows disappeared, and Sora admitted that her parents didn’t look _that_ bad when they were younger.

She smiled into her pillow. They looked really hilarious though.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haha, I always thought it was funny how Niji actually had blond hair once.  
> Btw, How they got their children is left for open interpretation. :DDD


	5. Sore Losers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> College AU where Niji is captain of the basketball team

“... this is not the end. Keep your heads held up high, and we’ll conquer the next match...”

In the locker room, Nijimura stood tall as he delivered his post-game speech to the team after their bitter loss. Though his exterior was tough and composed, Haizaki knew inside, Nijimura seethed with anger. 

They lost by a measly point after all. A measly point contributing to the victory of their number one nemesis.

Just thinking about the enemy made Haizaki want to smack something—but not yet. He needed to hold it together for the team, just like Nijimura.

The motivational words proved to be effective as hung heads slowly rose up. Their coach even gave Nijimura a curt nod of approval.

Moriyama, on the other hand, looked like he was about to break down as he tried to wipe the first tears of a crying session away. His house packed with decorations and celebratory food would go to waste tonight, not that Haizaki was planning on showing up if they had won.

Even though Moriyama threw the best parties their university had ever heard of, Haizaki had stopped showing up to his team’s victory parties in favor of hanging out with Nijimura instead. Before they got together, he and Nijimura always ended up ditching the parties to celebrate in their own way. Just the two of them. Sometimes at Nijimura’s place, sometimes at Haizaki’s.

Surprisingly, movie night, blanket forts, lazy kisses and making fun of those silly magazine questionnaires about ‘Is your boyfriend the best boyfriend ever?’ made for a better celebration so long as they were in each other’s company.

“Ready to go?” Haizaki asked Nijimura after freshening up. 

Everybody else had left the locker room, most of them heading to Moriyama’s for free food despite the sight of flashy decorations only fit for winners. No balloon, disco light or any other victory-themed ornament was going to stop them from happily enjoying a well-deserved buffet of meals.

Nijimura wished he could say the same. 

He finally nodded, lugging his duffel bag over his shoulder. “Yup, let’s do this.”

\--

The arcade’s colorful disco lights reached the duo at their corner, and Haizaki momentarily wondered how Moriyama was holding up. He made sure to message Izuki to make sure the fellow point guard kept an eye out for Moriyama.

Nijimura slid two coins into his game’s coin slot, peering at the incoming message Haizaki received. It was a short video of Moriyama crowd surfing to fast paced music amongst their many devoted fans that happened to show up.

“Seems like they’re doing okay,” Haizaki said, slipping his phone into the pocket of his jacket. “Not like us...”

Nijimura in turn gripped the handle of the heavy oversized mallet in his hands, eyes focused on the digital countdown in front of him. He was glad that his teammates weren’t getting caught up in the somber aftermath of the game. They were warriors. Always have been.

Both he and Haizaki were a different story...

“Stupid Nash!” Haizaki cried out as he struck the first mole that popped up from its hole. He continued to whack each mole that revealed its annoying grin to him, similar to the grin said opponent sported during the match.

Right beside Haizaki, Nijimura’s hits were steady and strong. He kept hitting and hitting, releasing his negative energy on some smirking moles.

_Pow._ That one was for his basket miss in the last minute of the game.

_Wham._ That one was for letting his teammates down.

_Bam._ That one was for failing his pop quiz in biology.

_Boom._ That one was for the pathetic magazine saying that Haizaki wasn’t the best boyfriend ever.

Nijimura’s pent up frustration gradually diminished with each blow. Haizaki eventually abandoned his own game to help Nijimura, not caring if this was the fourth time the arcade employees found the two cheating on some whack-a-mole game. 

They were both sore losers it seemed, and in the very likely event of a ban from this arcade, Haizaki would have no trouble finding a different one to channel their anger into.


End file.
